Is it time to call it quits??? Too many injuries and need advice

Mods: im not asking for medical advice. Just curious to know what routes and channels others with a similar history have taken to address said situation.

I am a 31 year old expat in the Middle East. I've rotator cuff tears on both shoulders (according to MRI) and patella femoral syndrome on both knees ( X ray). Any sort of exercise will end up in pain and I don't mean the good kind. I've had prp injections on both shoulders to no avail. I'm due for an MRI on both shoulders to see if there has been any progress with the PRP but I'm confident there has been no improvement.

Some of you may suggest physiotherapy but it sucks here. I know the exercises necessary from the physiotherapy sessions I've had in London (hometown) but don't have the discipline to stick to it. What you're really paying for when you arrange therapy is for them to stay on top of you because we're not disciplined enough without their influence. Besides, by shoulders seem beyond therapy at this stage.

Surgery may be an option but I could be out for a year since it's both shoulders.

I'm a big fan of Revolution in Motion in Southern California. I was lucky enough to work out with them for a weekend years ago.

If your spine becomes more aligned, decreasing some kyphosis, that can help scapular motion and shoulder health. It helped me quite a bit.

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Fantastic advice! The days of prescribing the cookie cutter internal/external rotation exercises for shoulder injuries are gone. Most people don't realize that thoracic spine problems and the orientation of the scapula are probably the biggest cause of shoulder injury. And you can have all the surgeries you want, you will keep getting injured. Its like replacing tires on a car with shot suspension and alignment. My recommendations are:

-Foam rolling. both for working out the adhesions and the self massage aspect of it and also for working on thoracic extension.
-Find a way to really massage the upper traps hard and get them to loosen up.
-Work the lower traps and serratus anterior muscles to restore balance to the shoulder girdle.
-You might want to consider more PRP after you have been doing this a while. Also, look into prolo-therapy for shoulders. Its extremely interesting.

Once you work this for a while you shoulder joint will be allowed to start to heal. It will all take time but you really have no choice but to work this hard.

Fantastic advice! The days of prescribing the cookie cutter internal/external rotation exercises for shoulder injuries are gone. Most people don't realize that thoracic spine problems and the orientation of the scapula are probably the biggest cause of shoulder injury. And you can have all the surgeries you want, you will keep getting injured. Its like replacing tires on a car with shot suspension and alignment. My recommendations are:

-Foam rolling. both for working out the adhesions and the self massage aspect of it and also for working on thoracic extension.
-Find a way to really massage the upper traps hard and get them to loosen up.
-Work the lower traps and serratus anterior muscles to restore balance to the shoulder girdle.
-You might want to consider more PRP after you have been doing this a while. Also, look into prolo-therapy for shoulders. Its extremely interesting.

Once you work this for a while you shoulder joint will be allowed to start to heal. It will all take time but you really have no choice but to work this hard.

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I don't foam roll. I basically do some of their exercises on a small swiss ball to iron out any kyphotic tendencies. There's more, but I can feel it all go back into place. I also have a tight pec on the left, other things too that help.

I don't foam roll. I basically do some of their exercises on a small swiss ball to iron out any kyphotic tendencies. There's more, but I can feel it all go back into place. I also have a tight pec on the left, other things too that help.

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I have thought about also using a smaller, more solid, medicine ball. As for the tight pec, you ever try PNF stretching? Its aggressive and uncomfortable but effective in a short period of time.

Patellofemoral Pain Syndrome doesn't generally require surgery to fix, and the rehab isn't particularly arduous or long-term. If you can't dedicate a relatively short period of your life to being able to more your legs without pain, i'm not sure how you're going to have the level of drive needed to do....anything ever really.

The "patellofemoral pain syndrome" can range in severity from necessitating merely days/weeks to heal up, to necessitating years of proper management, to being beyond (non-surgical) repair (with surgical intervention being of uncertain effectiveness).

Surgery may be an option but I could be out for a year since it's both shoulders.

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In addition to all of the non-surgical advice in this thread, I'd be more open to the idea of not lifting seriously for a year while you heal from shoulder surgery. A year is nothing. You're already saying that most exercise hurts. It would be tragic for you to push through with painful shoulders for 10 years, get the surgery in your forties, and think to yourself "I should have done this a decade ago".

In addition to all of the non-surgical advice in this thread, I'd be more open to the idea of not lifting seriously for a year while you heal from shoulder surgery. A year is nothing. You're already saying that most exercise hurts. It would be tragic for you to push through with painful shoulders for 10 years, get the surgery in your forties, and think to yourself "I should have done this a decade ago".

Not in any way suggesting that surgery should be your top option.

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I think this is a valid POV on the situation but in my experience, resting longer than 8 weeks is not a good thing. Especially for chronic type injuries. What most people need is the right combo of exercises, stretches, massage, and stuff like that. Keeping things moving preserves strength, muscle mass, nerve flow, and keeps the synovial fluid viscous.

I don't foam roll. I basically do some of their exercises on a small swiss ball to iron out any kyphotic tendencies. There's more, but I can feel it all go back into place. I also have a tight pec on the left, other things too that help.

Sorry, I should have explained further. Part of what a therapist does is address all the nuances which we, ourselves, are ignorant of. In my situation the therapist has recommended xyz, I then travel back to ME, make a mistake, or jump the gun which only the therapist can address. Consequently I'm left to my own devices which doesn't really help.

Fantastic advice! The days of prescribing the cookie cutter internal/external rotation exercises for shoulder injuries are gone. Most people don't realize that thoracic spine problems and the orientation of the scapula are probably the biggest cause of shoulder injury. And you can have all the surgeries you want, you will keep getting injured. Its like replacing tires on a car with shot suspension and alignment. My recommendations are:

-Foam rolling. both for working out the adhesions and the self massage aspect of it and also for working on thoracic extension.
-Find a way to really massage the upper traps hard and get them to loosen up.
-Work the lower traps and serratus anterior muscles to restore balance to the shoulder girdle.
-You might want to consider more PRP after you have been doing this a while. Also, look into prolo-therapy for shoulders. Its extremely interesting.

Once you work this for a while you shoulder joint will be allowed to start to heal. It will all take time but you really have no choice but to work this hard.

Click to expand...

I agree with all of this and it's why I'm confused. My range of motion is good but whenever it comes to lifting anything I end up in pain the following day.

In addition to all of the non-surgical advice in this thread, I'd be more open to the idea of not lifting seriously for a year while you heal from shoulder surgery. A year is nothing. You're already saying that most exercise hurts. It would be tragic for you to push through with painful shoulders for 10 years, get the surgery in your forties, and think to yourself "I should have done this a decade ago".